California Organized Investment Network (COIN) Is a Collaborative Effort Between the California Department of Insurance, the Insurance Industry, Community Affordable Housing and Economic Development Organizations, and Community Advocates.

The Investigation Division investigates suspected fraud committed by insurance agents, brokers, public adjusters, bail agents, insurance companies and other individuals and entities transacting the business of insurance who perpetrate fraud against consumers.

Licensing Services Division Notices Archive

The following notices were issued by the California Department of Insurance's Licensing Services Division. The notices are listed by month and year. Each subject title contains a link to the notices. These notices are available in Adobe's Portable Document Format (PDF). To view these pdf forms on your browser you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader on your computer. A free copy of the Adobe Acrobat Reader can be downloaded from our Free Document Readers web page. Additionally, new notices may be added periodically, so keep checking back. Links are also provided to any available websites containing more detailed information related to the notice.

Note: If you are looking for Bulletins and Public Notices that were issued by a CDI entity other than the Licensing Services Division, please visit the following link: Bulletins and Notices

2003

March 2015 Notices

Updated Prelicensing Educational Objectives - Life and Accident/Health The Curriculum Board, appointed by the California Insurance Commissioner, recently proposedrevisions to the Educational Objectives (EOs) for the Life Agent license and the Accident andHealth Agent license. Subsequently, the California Department of Insurance (CDI) approvedthese revised EOs.

October 2014 Notices

Online Course Application Service is Now Available Continuing education providers can now submit courses and course materials online to the California Department of Insurance. This service is made possible through a partnership with a third-party vendor, Vertafore.

August 2014 Notices

Public Insurance Adjuster Examination Content Outline To better prepare candidates to successfully pass the qualifying examination for the Public Insurance Adjuster license, the department, with assistance from the Commissioner's appointed Curriculum Board, recently developed a comprehensive examination content outline that details the material that will be covered in the examination.

November 2013 Notices

Reminder of Bail Solicitation Laws The California Second District Court of Appeals recently ruled on a case, People v. Todd RussellDolezal; which involved directly soliciting bail bond business at a county jail. The court ruled that prohibiting a bail bondsman’s direct solicitation of bail from arrestees does not violate the first andfourteenth amendment’s protection of commercial speech.

October 2013 Notices

Ethics Training Requirement - Education Providers To comply with the NAIC standard and to promote consistency among the different types of agent and broker licenses, the number of ethics training hours to be completed by all insurance agents and brokers will be changed to 3 hours begininning on January 1, 2014.

Ethics Training Requirement - Agents and Brokers To comply with the NAIC standard and to promote consistency among the different types of agent and broker licenses, the number of ethics training hours to be completed by all insurance agents and brokers will be changed to 3 hours beginning on January 1, 2014.

August 2013 Notices

Reporting of Administrative Actions and Criminal Convictions On January 1, 2005, Section 1729.2 was added to the California Insurance Code. This section requires all licensees and applicants for licenses issued by the California Department of Insurance’s (CDI) Producer Licensing Bureau to report any administrative actions or criminal convictions to CDI within 30 days of the final disposition of the matter. This requirement applies to both California resident and non-resident licensees and applicants.

Insurance Adjuster (Independent) License To better prepare candidates to successfully pass the qualifying examination for the Insurance Adjuster license, the department, with assistance from the Commissioner’s appointed Curriculum Board, recently developed a comprehensive examination content outline that details the material that will be covered in the examination.

July 2013 Notices

Life and Disability Insurance Analyst License To better prepare candidates to successfully pass the qualifying examination for the Life and Disability Insurance Analyst license, the department, with assistance from the Commissioner’s appointed Curriculum Board, recently developed a comprehensive examination content outline that details the material that will be covered in the examination.

October 2012 Notices

Improved License Application Process To improve customer service and increase the efficiencies of its license application process, effective Tuesday November 13, 2012, the California Department of Insurance (CDI) will be changing the process to apply for an insurance agent or broker license. The change will affect California residents applying for any license in which an examination is required (i.e., life, accident and health, property, casualty, personal lines, limited lines automobile, and life limited to funeral and burial expenses).

December 2011 Notices

Recent Changes to Portable Electronics Insurance Agent License Assembly Bill (AB) 690 (Chapter 165, Statutes of 2011) becomes effective on January 1, 2012. The new law redefines communications equipment as portable electronics and as such changes the name of the license from Communications Equipment Insurance Agent to Portable Electronics Insurance Agent.

Updated Life Agent Educational Objectives The California Department of Insurance (CDI) held a Life Agent Examination Workshop in October 2011 that was facilitated by PSI Services, CDI's examination vendor. CDI recruited subject matter experts (SMEs) in the life insurance field to participate in the workshop. The SMEs reviewed and evaluated the current questions on the life agent license examination. The review was conducted to determine whether any changes are needed to ensure that the questions are current and relevant for a newly licensed agent to know about transacting life insurance. The SMEs also suggested several edits to the Life Agent Educational Objectives (LO EOs), which were referenced during the workshop. Please note that the questions reviewed pertained to only life insurance, not any of the accident/health insurance related questions.

Updated Accident and Health Agent Educational Objectives The federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) and the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 are the principal health care reform laws. As a result of the new legislation, the Curriculum Board convened a subcommittee to review and amend the Accident and Health Agent Educational Objectives (AH EOs) to include material covering both PPACA and the California Health Benefit Exchange which was implemented to partially address the provisions of PPACA. In addition, the AH EOs were amended to also include curriculum on the Medical Loss Ratio; Major Risk Medical Insurance Program, California public coverage programs, and healthy families programs. All amendments were approved by the full Curriculum Board

California’s Annuity Training Requirements Section 1749.8 of the California Insurance Code (CIC) requires that every insurance producer who sells annuities shall satisfactorily complete eight hours of training prior to soliciting consumers to sell annuities. This section further requires insurance producers to complete four hours of training every two years prior to their license renewal. The four-hour training does not have to be repeated if the insurance producer has already completed it for that license term even if the insurance producer is appointed by different insurers during the license term.

October 2011 Notices

CDI's San Diego Examination Site to Close Effective 11/1/2011 With only a small number of individuals taking the examination at the California Department of Insurance San Diego examination site each day, the department determined that it is no longer feasible to continue operations at this site. Therefore, the department's San Diego site will close effective November 1, 2011. Individuals living in the San Diego area will still have the option of taking the examination at a nearby PSI location such as in San Diego, Riverside and Anaheim or at the department's Los Angeles test center.

June 2011 Notices

Online Bail Renewal Service is Now Available Effective immediately, the California Department of Insurance (CDI) has an online license renewal service available to its bail agents. Although CDI has offered an online license renewal service for several of its insurance agent licenses, it never before had such a service available for the bail agents.

March 2011 Notices

Reminder – June 30th Deadline Approaching – Accident and Health License Assembly Bill (AB) 2782 (Chapter 400, Statutes of 2010) became effective on January 1, 2011. Included among the provisions of the bill was to require all individuals and business entities to hold an accident and health agent license to transact accident and health insurance. Section 1626(a)(2) of the California Insurance Code defines accident and health insurance as insurance coverage for sickness, bodily injury, or accidental death and may include benefits for disability income.

February 2011 Notices

New Examination Scheduling Service PSI Services, LLC, a California-based company providing state-based regulatory licensure services, will begin handling the scheduling of examinations for individuals licensed by the California Department of Insurance's (CDI) Producer Licensing Bureau starting with examinations that are taken on April 2, 2011. Instructions for scheduling examinations will be posted on PSI's website at www.psiexams.com (PSI News) beginning on March 7, 2011. Individuals may schedule their examinations with PSI either online or by telephone.

Revised Homeowners' Insurance Valuation Course Curriculum As a result of the OAL approving the regulations, there are several sections of the Curriculum Board's course outline that have been changed to fully reflect the content of the regulations. Consequently, existing courses will need to be modified to include all of the elements of the revised outline which is entitled, "California Department of Insurance Property and Casualty Broker-Agent and Personal Lines Broker-Agent Homeowners' Insurance Valuation Course Curriculum."

New Homeowners' Insurance Valuation Training Requirement On or after June 27, 2011, prior to estimating the replacement value of structures or explaining the various levels of coverage under a homeowners' insurance policy, California resident agents and brokers who have not previously completed the homeowners' insurance valuation training, must do so. Completion of this course will fully meet the training requirements. The training requirement is part of, and not in addition to, the agents and brokers' continuing education requirements.

January 2011 Notices

Consulting Requirement for Education Courses Section 1810.7(c) of the California Insurance Code requires bail education providers to consult with the California State Sheriff's Association, the California District Attorney's Association and the CountyCounsels' Association of California prior to submitting outlines for new education courses to the California Department of Insurance (CDI) for approval. This requirement applies to both prelicensing and continuing education courses but does not apply to the renewal of previously approved courses.

December 2010 Notices

Updated Educational Objectives for Personal Lines, Commercial and Limited Lines Automobile Agent licenses Assembly Bill (AB) 2782 (Chapter 400, Statutes of 2010) will become effective on January 1, 2011. This bill allows for the issuance of separate property broker-agent and casualty broker-agent licenses in addition to continuing to issue the combined property and casualty broker-agent license. It also requires that individuals must be licensed for the accident and health agent license to transact accident and health insurance.

Surplus Line Broker Online License Renewals Section 1655 of the California Insurance Code (CIC) requires license renewals for insurance producers to be filed electronically if the California Department of Insurance (CDI) has an online license renewal service available for the type of producer license to be renewed. Although CDI has an online license renewal service for several of its producer licenses such as the fire and casualty broker-agent license, it has not had an online renewal service available for the surplus line broker license.

New Email Address Search Report To assist insurers and business entities to meeting the requirements stated in Section 1658 of the California Insurance Code, the California Department of Insurance (CDI) has a new Email Address Search Report that provides insurers with a list of their appointed agents who do not have an email address on record with CDI. The Report also provides business entities with a list of their endorsed agents who do not have an email address on record with CDI.

November 2010 Notices

AB 2782 Important Update - Accident and Health Agent License Requirements As explained in two recent notices, Assembly Bill (AB) 2782 (Chapter 400, Statutes of 2010) will become effective on January 1, 2011. Included among the provisions of the bill is to require all individuals and business entities to hold an accident and health agent license to transact accident and health insurance. AB 2782 Important Update Notice states that the commissioner is granting a six month extension to current fire and casualty broker-agents to obtain the accident and health agent license. Fire and casualty broker-agents licensed prior to December 31, 2010 will now have until June 30, 2011 to obtain the accident and health agent license to continue to transact accident and health insurance. The extension applies to both individuals and business entities as well as to both Californiaresidents and non-residents.

Updated Property and Casualty Educational Objectives Assembly Bill (AB) 2782 (Chapter 400, Statutes of 2010) will become effective on January 1, 2011. This bill made several changes to the California Insurance Code (CIC) to bring Californiacloser to uniformity with other states' insurance producer licensing laws. The bill allows for the issuance of separate property broker-agent and casualty broker-agent licenses in addition to continuing to issue the combined property and casualty broker-agent license. To accommodate this change, the previous Fire and Casualty Broker-Agent prelicensing Educational Objectives (EOs) were divided into separate Property Broker-Agent and Casualty Broker-Agent EOs.

Change to Credit Insurance Agent License Assembly Bill (AB) 2782 (Chapter 400, Statutes of 2010) will become effective on January 1, 2011. Included among the provisions of the bill was to expand the kinds of insurance that a credit insurance agent is allowed to transact to include guaranteed automobile protection (GAP) insurance.

Changes to Insurance Adjuster Licensing Laws Assembly Bill (AB) 2782 (Chapter 400, Statutes of 2010) will become effective on January 1, 2011. Included among the provisions of the bill was to set the ethics training requirement for both independent and public insurance adjusters at three hours each two-year license term and to stagger the renewal dates for new applicants.

Revised AB 2782 Fire and Casualty Notice The California Department of Insurance (CDI) has received several inquiries regarding a notice that was emailed on Friday November 5, 2010. The Notice, entitled "Licensing Changes," discussed upcoming licensing changes as a result of the passage of AB 2782 that may affect current fire and casualty broker-agents and applicants. One of these changes is that effective January 1, 2011 fire and casualty broker-agents must also hold an accident and health agent license to continue to transact disability insurance.

AB 2782 Fire and Casualty Notice Assembly Bill (AB) 2782 (Chapter 400, Statutes of 2010) will become effective on January 1, 2011. This bill made several changes to the California Insurance Code (CIC) to bring Californiacloser to uniformity with other states' insurance producer licensing laws. Included among the provisions of the bill is to require individuals and business entities to hold an accident and health agent license to transact disability insurance. The bill also allows for the issuance of separate property broker-agent and casualty broker-agent licenses in addition to continuing to issue the combined property and casualty broker-agent license.

AB 2782 Bail Notice Assembly Bill (AB) 2782 (Chapter 400, Statutes of 2010) will become effective on January 1, 2011. Included among the provisions of the bill was to increase the license term for bail licensees from one year to two years.

August 2010 Notices

Revised Eight-Hour Long Term Care Outline Senate Bill 1943 (Mello) Long-Term Care Insurance was signed into law in 1992 and took effect on January 1, 1993. This bill added Section 10234.93 to the California Insurance Code (CIC) to implement the eight-hour long-term care (LTC) training requirements.

July 2010 Notices

New California Life Settlement Law - Emergency Regulations Previously, the California Department of Insurance (CDI) notified all Life Insurers, LifeAgents, Viatical Settlement Brokers and other interested parties that emergency regulations needed to implement the licensing provisions of Senate Bill (SB) 98 (Calderon, Chapter 393, Statutes of 2009) Life insurance: contract and viatical settlements were pending submission to the California Office of Administrative Law (OAL).

June 2010 Notices

New California Life Settlement Law - Pending Emergency Regulations On October 11, 2009 Governor Schwarzenegger signed into law Senate Bill (SB) 98 (Calderon, Chapter 393, Statutes of 2009). The new law repeals existing California viatical settlement statutes and in its place creates life settlement statutes now contained in Sections 10113.1 through 10113.3 of the California Insurance Code (CIC). Under the terms of the new statutes, life settlement brokers and providers will be required to obtain a license from the California Insurance Commissioner, to transact life settlement business in California and will be subject to both licensing and consumer disclosure requirements.

March 2010 Notices

New SB 98 (Life Settlements) Requirements for Education Providers On October 11, 2009 Governor Schwarzenegger signed into law Senate Bill (SB) 98 (Calderon, Chapter 393, Statutes of 2009) Life insurance: contract and viatical settlements. This bill repealed existing viatical settlement statutes and in its place created life settlement statutes now contained in Sections 10113.1 and 10113.2 in the California Insurance Code (CIC).

New Online Prelicensing Course Requirements Assembly Bill 2387 (Chapter 590, Statutes of 2006) was signed into law and took effect on January 1, 2007. This law amended Section 1749 of the California Insurance Code (CIC) by removing the word "classroom" from the prelicensing education requirement. It also added sub-section 1749 (j) to ensure that safeguards for monitoring online student education are in place to maintain the integrity of prelicensing education.

Revised Prelicensing and Continuing Education Regulations The California Office of Administrative Law recently approved amendments to the Prelicensing and Continuing Education Course regulations, Sections 2186 through 2188.9 of the California Code of Regulations (CCR), which take effect on March 25, 2010. Listed below are summaries describing several changes contained in four sections of the regulations which were amended that affect all education providers.

Four Hour Annuity Training Requirement On July 1, 2004, the California Department of Insurance (CDI) sent a notice to all insurers to explain the annuity training requirement that resulted from the signing of SB 620 (Scott, Chapter 547, Statutes of 2003). SB 620 added Section 1749.8 to the California Insurance Code (CIC).

February 2010 Notices

New Laws for Medicare Supplement Insurance "Medigap" The federal Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act of 2008 (P.L. 110-275) required states to adopt certain changes to Medicare Supplement insurance policies. These changes became law in California on July 2, 2009 when Assembly Bill 1543 (Chapter 10, Statutes of 2009) was signed.

Changes to California's Non-Resident Fingerprint Requirement In an effort to move towards full reciprocity with other states in regards to non-resident licensing, beginning on March 1, 2010, the California Department of Insurance (CDI) will no longer require fingerprints from applicants who were previously fingerprinted as a condition of obtaining an insurance producer license in their resident state.

January 2010 Notices

Advanced Flood Insurance Training for Insurance Producers Recently, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) received requests from insurance producers for advanced flood insurance training courses to be taken by individuals who previously completed the 3-hour basic flood insurance course. In response to these requests, FEMA prepared the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) Advanced Training Topics and Objectives which are included in the Advanced Flood Insurance Training for Insurance Producers notice.

November 2009 Notices

Changes in Licensing Laws to Take Effect on January 1, 2010 AB 800 (Chapter 254, Statutes of 2009) will become effective on January 1, 2010. This bill made several changes to the California Insurance Code (CIC) for the purpose of encouraging online filings from insurance producers and to bring California closer to uniformity with other states' producer licensing laws.

October 2009 Notices

Insurance Producer Notice-NIPR Attachments Warehouse California Department of Insurance (CDI) will immediately begin to accept documents and notices submitted on behalf of insurance producers through the NAIC/NIPR Attachments Warehouse, which will allow for the electronic filing of licensing related documents. Documents submitted to the Attachments Warehouse satisfy the regulatory requirements for the notification and reporting of administrative, criminal, and civil actions to the insurance commissioner pursuant to Section 1729.2 of the California Insurance Code.

Bail and Adjuster Notice-NIPR Attachments Warehouse: California Department of Insurance (CDI) will immediately begin to accept documents and notices submitted on behalf bail agents, insurance adjusters and Public insurance adjusters through the NAIC/NIPR Attachments Warehouse, which will allow for the electronic filing of licensing related documents. Documents submitted to the Attachments Warehouse satisfy the regulatory requirements for the notification and reporting of administrative, criminal, and civil actions to the insurance commissioner pursuant to Section 1729.2 of the California Insurance Code.

Changes to License Renewals Beginning with licenses that will expire on December 31, 2009, the California Department of Insurance (CDI) will no longer mail renewal notices to individuals and business entities licensed through CDI's Producer Licensing Bureau. Instead, CDI will email licensees a renewal notification to their email address on record.

August 2009 Notices

Bail Agent Licenses Beginning on July 1, 2009, the California Department of Insurance (CDI) stopped printing and mailing licenses to bail agents. Instead, CDI began sending email notifications to all of its individual and organizational licensees with instructions on how to download and print their license from CDI's web site. The email notification includes a link to the new "Obtain Your License Online" service. However, at the time of initial licensure CDI continues to issue blue bail license identification cards to bail agents, which includes the bail agent's photograph.

Address Change Requests Beginning September 1, 2009, the California Department of Insurance's (CDI) Producer Licensing Bureau (PLB) will only accept address change requests from its licensees through the Internet, either through its free online address change service or the National Insurance Producer Registry online address service. Address change requests consist of changes to mailing address, business address, residence address, e-mail address, residence telephone number and business telephone number.

May 2009 Notice

Fee Reduction and Paperless License On July 1, 2009 the California Department of Insurance (CDI) implemented two significant changes that affect both individuals and business entities who are licensed through its Producer Licensing Bureau. First, as reported in CDI's 2009-3 Bulletin, issued on March 26, 2009, CDI will be decreasing fees by six-percent for all insurers and insurance producers. Secondly, in keeping with Commissioner Poizner's strategic initiative to have 100 percent paperless interaction with agents, brokers and insurers by 2010, beginning July 1, 2009 CDI will no longer print and mail hard copies of its licenses. Instead, individuals and business entities will receive an email with instructions and a website link to download their license from the CDI's website.

December 2008 Notice

New Law Regulating Use of Senior Designations On September 26, 2008, Assembly Bill 2150 (Berg, Chapter 327, Statutes of 2008) was signed into law and will take effect on January 1, 2009. This new law, which adds Section 787.1 to the California Insurance Code (CIC), prohibits insurance agents and brokers from using a "senior designation" unless the designation has been approved by the California Department of Insurance (CDI).

November 2008 Notices

Title Insurance Marketing Representatives Section 12404 of the CIC was amended to specify those unlawful activities that are considered to be inducements to any person for the placement or referral of title insurance business. Section 12418 et. seq. of the CIC was added to establish a certificate of registration requirement for those individuals who market, offer, solicit, negotiate, or sell title insurance.

Updated Prelicensing Educational Objectives Because of many changes to the California Insurance Code, changes to federal laws and current industry trends, the educational objectives for several license types were recently revised. The license types affected consist of the Life-Only Agent, Accident and Health Agent, Fire and Casualty Broker-Agent, Personal Lines Broker-Agent, Limited Lines Automobile Insurance Agent, and the Commercial, Health and Disability (upgrade).

New Insurance Adjuster Licensing Laws To Take Effect on January 1, 2009 On January 1, 2009 changes to both the independent and public insurance adjuster licensing laws will take effect as a result of the passage of Assembly Bill 2044 (Duvall, Chapter 300, Statutes of 2008). There were several changes resulting from this bill, including many changes for the purpose of allowing California's independent adjuster and public adjuster licensing laws to be uniform with other states. Listed below are the independent adjuster and public insurance adjuster changes that will take effect.

New Licensing Laws To Take Effect on January 1, 2009 changes to California's producer licensing laws will take effect as a result of the passage of Assembly Bill 2044 (Duvall, Chapter 300, Statutes of 2008). There were several changes resulting from this bill, most for the purpose of allowing California's producer licensing laws to be uniform with other states.

October 2008 Notice

Guidelines for Waiver of Penalty for Non-Use of Electronic Fund Transfer (EFT) and for Non-Timely Payment of Taxes Pursuant to California Insurance Code (CIC) Sections 1775.8(c)(1) and 12976.5(c)(1), any surplus line broker or insurer required to remit taxes by EFT who remits those taxes by means other that an approved EFT method shall be assessed a penalty in an amount equal to 10 percent of the taxes due at the time of the payment. Pursuant to CIC Sections 1775.4(e) and 1775.5(b), a penalty of 10 percent of the amount of the payment due shall be levied upon and paid by any surplus line broker who fails to make the necessary payment within the time required. These regulations define and make clear under what situations the surplus line broker or insurer may be relieved of the penalty.

June 2008 Notice

AB 1699 (Duvall) New Surplus Line Broker License Fees On June 13, 2008, AB 1699 (Duvall, Chapter 29, Statutes of 2008) immediately became law as an urgency bill. This new law amends the California Insurance Code to make additional changes to the surplus line brokers and special lines' surplus line brokers licensing requirements and fees.

March 2008 Notice

Los Angeles and San Diego Examination Sites - Saturday Examinations The California Department of Insurance (CDI) is currently experiencing a significant increase in the number of applicants requesting examinations dates at both the Los Angeles and San Diego examination sites. To alleviate the Los Angeles and San Diego examination site scheduling delays, the CDI will be offering Saturday examinations for a limited time.

November 2007 Notice

New Limited Lines Automobile Insurance Agent Requirements Assembly Bill 797 (Coto, Chapter 271, Statutes of 2007) was signed into law and will take effect on January 1, 2008. This legislation creates a Limited Lines Automobile Insurance Agent license and establishes the prelicensing and continuing education requirements for this new license.

October 2007 Notice

New Life Agent License Requirements Assembly Bill 720 (De Leon, Chapter 270, Statutes of 2007) was signed into law and will take effect on January 1, 2008. This legislation makes significant changes to the life agent license qualifications, including changes to the prelicensing and continuing education (CE) requirements contained in Section 1749 et seq. of the California Insurance Code (CIC). Specifically, California's life agent licensing laws will be changed to establish two new insurance agent license types, a life-only agent license and an accident and health agent license. These two new license types will affect both individual and organization licenses and applicants. This Notice provides prelicensing and continuing education requirements for the two new license types.

September 2007 Notices

Fingerprint Fee Reduction - Title 18 U.S.C. Section 1033 Applicants for Written Consent All 1033 Applicants for Written Consent are required to submit fingerprint impressions to the California Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) for completion of a background check before the California Department of Insurance (CDI) can complete processing their application. Effective October 1, 2007, the FBI's share of the fingerprint processing fee will be reduced from $24 to $19. The total fee for obtaining fingerprint impressions is calculated as follows: FBI processing fee of $19, DOJ processing fee of $32, and an additional "rolling fee" charged by the DOJ authorized vendor. The additional "rolling fee" will vary depending on the vendor and is noted on DOJ's listing of authorized Live Scan Fingerprint vendors. Applicants are encouraged to contact the Live Scan vendor in advance to verify their current operating hours, location, fees, and their acceptable method of payment (i.e. credit card, cash, ATM).

Fingerprint Fee Reduction - California Resident and Non-Resident Insurance Producer Effective October 1, 2007, the FBI's share of the fingerprint processing fee will be reduced from $24 to $19 for California insurance producer license applicants. All California resident and non-resident insurance producer applicants are required to submit fingerprint impressions to the California Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) for completion of a background check before the California Department of Insurance (CDI) can complete processing their application. The total fee for obtaining fingerprint impressions is calculated as follows: FBI processing fee of $19, DOJ processing fee of $32, and an additional "rolling fee" charged by the DOJ authorized vendor. The additional "rolling fee" will vary depending on the vendor and is noted on DOJ's listing of authorized Live Scan Fingerprint vendors. License applicants are encouraged to contact the Live Scan vendor in advance to verify their current operating hours, location, fees, and their acceptable method of payment (i.e. credit card, cash, ATM).

New Surplus Line Broker License Requirement Notice. This notice was sent to all Surplus Line Brokers and Fire and Casualty Broker-Agents Currently Transacting on Behalf of Surplus Line Broker Organizations. On January 1, 2008 California's surplus line broker licensing requirements and fees will change for the purpose of streamlining the licensing process and to become more uniform and reciprocal with other states in regards to resident and non-resident licensing of surplus line brokers.

January 2007 Notices

Electronic Filing Requirements - Insurance Company Appointments and Terminations This notice was sent out to all admitted insurers and other interested parties. The State Office of Administrative Law approved new regulations requiring insurance companies to submit their notices of appointments and terminations to the California Department of Insurance (CDI) electronically. Article 12 was added to Title 10, Chapter 5, Subchapter 1 of the California Code of Regulations (CCR). The requirement goes into effect on February 11, 2007. The license lines of insurance affected by these regulations include: Life, Fire and Casualty, and Personal Lines. Other lines included are: Travel Agent, Part Time Fraternal Agents, Disability Only, and Home Protections. See notice for information on who to contact to submit appointments and terminations electronically and exceptions to the electronic submission requirements.

New Online Service for Insurance Agencies This notice was sent to California licensed insurance agencies and other interested parties. The CDI is now offering a new Business Entity Endorsement and Termination Online Service that enables insurance agencies (a.k.a. business entities) to endorse and/or terminate agents through the internet. This new service reduces the timeline for processing an endorsement or termination by several weeks. It provides for real-time entry of an endorsement or termination. Additionally, the new service will validate the agent information to ensure that the agent is eligible to be endorsed to the business entity license before sending the information. To begin using this new online service, please select the following link: Business Entity Endorsement and Termination Online Service

Life - Limited to the Payment of Funeral and Burial Expenses License (Previously Known as the Life - Limited to PreNeed License) Effective January 1, 2007, the California Insurance Code (CIC) was amended by adding Section 1676 (j). Section 1676(j) states that an applicant for a life agent license that is limited by the terms of a written agreement with an insurer to transact only specific life insurance policies or annuities having an initial face amount of fifteen thousand dollars ($15,000) or less that are designated for the payment of funeral and burial expenses, shall not be required to take the full life agent examination to obtain a license. Applicants for the limited life license shall be required to pass an examination developed to test their knowledge of topics relevant to the type of policies that they are restricted to sell. The California Department of Insurance (CDI) has available on its website the Examination Objectives for this limited life license. The Objectives provide applicants with an outline of items to study prior to taking the examination. Select the following link to review these Objectives: Life- Limited to the Payment of Funeral and Burial Expenses Examination Objectives

Flood Insurance Training Requirements for Fire/Casualty Broker-Agents and Personal Lines Broker-Agents Selling through the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) Section 207 of the Flood Insurance Reform Act of 2004 requires all producers selling flood insurance policies under the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) to be properly trained and educated about the NFIP to ensure producers may best serve their clients. An insurance producer who sells flood insurance may satisfy the minimum training and education requirements by completing a course related to the NFIP, which may be approved for three hours of continuing education credit by the California Department of Insurance (CDI). The failure to comply with this continuing education requirement may jeopardize the producer's authority to write insurance through the NFIP. Additional information regarding the new requirements is contained in the public notice. The flood training courses are available on the CDI's Education Provider and Course Listing Web page. To review these courses, select Education Provider and Course Search and fill-in the requested information. The flood training courses are listed in the "Flood" category type and will appear on your screen.

December 2006 Notice

Online Prelicensing Courses and Prelicensing Certificates of Completion This notice was sent to all education providers and other interested persons. Assembly Bill 2387 (Vargas, Chapter 590, Statutes of 2006) was signed into law on September 28, 2006 and will take effect on January 1, 2007. This law amends Section 1749 of the California Insurance Code to remove the word "classroom" from the prelicensing requirement and will add Section 1749 (g) to ensure that safeguards are in place to maintain the integrity of prelicensing education. As a result of this change, prelicensing education providers approved by the California Department of Insurance (CDI) can now submit online prelicensing education courses to the Commissioner for approval. Assembly Bill 2387 also added Section 1749 (h) which will become effective on January 1, 2007. This section states that all prelicensing certificates of completion will now expire three years after the completion of the prelicensing course, whether or not a license is issued to the student.

August 2006 Notice

Ethics Continuing Education Requirement The purpose of this notice is to inform resident insurance agents and brokers of a new continuing education requirement. Specifically, Section 2188.6 (h), (i), and (j) of the California Code of Regulations was amended effective June 24, 2006 to require Fire and Casualty broker-agents and Life agents to complete four hours of ethics continuing education every license term; and, to require Personal Lines broker-agents to complete two hours of ethics continuing education every license term. The ethics continuing education will be required for agents and brokers whose license term expires on or after January 31, 2007.

June 2006 Notice

Fingerprint Fee Reduction This notice was sent to all admitted insurers, education providers and all other interested parties. Effective June 12, 2006, the California Department of Insurance (CDI) reduced its fingerprint processing fee from $76 to $65.95. This 13 percent fee reduction represents a significant savings to insurers, license applicants and all other persons who are required to submit fingerprint impressions to the CDI.

December 2005 Notices

AB 729 - New Financial Security Requirements This notice is directed to all admitted insurers and other interested parties. Assembly Bill 729 (Koretz, Chapter 312, Statutes of 2005) was signed into law on September 22, 2005. Effective January 1, 2006, the bill requires limited liability companies (LLC's) to provide proof of satisfying the security requirements of Section 1647.5 of the California Insurance Code when applying for an insurance license and once licensed, must also file with the Commissioner an annual confirmation of coverage demonstrating continued compliance with the financial security requirements. Additional information regarding the new requirements is contained in the public notice.

BEWARE!!! Cheating is a Crime This notice is directed to all admitted insurers and other interested parties. Assembly Bill 729 (Koretz, Chapter 312, Statutes of 2005) was signed into law on September 22, 2005. Effective January 1, 2006, this bill also states that license applicants who willfully cheat or subvert a license examination will be in violation of the law as per Section 1681.5 of the California Insurance Code and are punishable by a fine not to exceed $10,000 or imprisonment not to exceed one year.

SB 518 - New Adjuster RequirementsThis notice is directed to all Public Insurance Adjusters and other interested parties. Senate Bill 518 (Kehoe), Chapter 448, Statutes of 2005, makes the following changes affecting public and interim insurance adjusters effective January 1, 2006: Increases the current surety bond required in CIC section 15033 from $5,000 to $20,000; increases the sum of the current deposit which can be filed in lieu of the surety bond required in CIC section 15036 from $5,000 to $20,000; reduces length of time in which an expired license or branch office certificate can be renewed from five (5) years to one (1) year; requires that every contract between the public adjuster and the insured contain certain new elements and cannot contain certain provisions currently allowed (see notice for attachments containing details of the new elements and provisions); and requires that before the contract is signed by the insured, the public adjuster must provide the insured a separate disclosure document that contains the name and license number of the public adjusters.

New Law Requiring Prompt Reply to Insurance Commissioner's Inquiries This notice is directed to all admitted insurers, insurance producers, and other interested parties. Assembly Bill 729 (Koretz), Chapter 312, Statutes of 2005, adds Section 1736.5 to the California Insurance Code effective January 1, 2006. Section 1736.5 authorizes the insurance commissioner to impose discipline against insurance producer licensees and applicants who fail to promptly reply to inquiries from the commissioner relating to any of the following matters: An application for, or the retention or renewal of a license; an investigation relating to a consumer complaint; or a matter relating to a producer licensing background change reporting requirement.

November 2005 Notice

Unlawful Sales Practices Pertaining to Medicare Part D and Annuities for Seniors The purpose of this notice is to make life insurers and life agents aware of specific communications with the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) with regard to: (A) allegations of unfair sales practices regarding the sale of Medicare Part D, and reinforce the application of state laws to marketing and sales practices involving Part D benefits; (B) address the provisions of the Insurance Information and Privacy Protection Act of the California Insurance Code, as they relate to the use of pretext interviews by insurers, producers and insurance-support organizations; and (C) inform insurers and agents regarding the use of marketing practices that are in violation of the Insurance Code and to address the responsibilities of both insurers and producers in assuring that the described or similar marketing practices are not used in the solicitation and sale of insurance in California.

February 2005 Notice

Export List Notice (Pursuant to Insurance Code Section 1763.1) This notice was sent to all surplus lines brokers, admitted insurers, and other interested parties. It provides information regarding an export list of risks and coverages eligible for placement with a nonadmitted insurer and exempt from all the requirements of Section 1763. For a copy of the 2005 Export List, please select the following link: Export List

Legislative Changes Affecting Public Adjusters (AB 1953) This notice was sent to all public adjusters. Public adjusters will be required to comply with new legislation that will provide protection for the consumer, and to cause those in this vocation to conduct business in a matter consistent with others in this industry. The Notice outline the penalties and fines for non-compliance.

Surplus Line Brokers Disclosure Form (AB 2490) This notice was sent to all surplus lines brokers and other interested parties. This amendment allows a homeowner's contract to be binding immediately when written in the surplus lines market with out a signature when the applicant is unable to meet with the broker. The broker must receive a signed disclosure within five days.

December 2004 Notices

Bail Services (SB 761) This notice was sent to all bail permitted, bail agents, bail solicitors and other interested parties. The undertaking of bail must be the name approved by the Commissioner and include the license number and other pertinent information of the owners.

Solicitation of Bail Services (AB 1694) This notice was sent to all bail permittees, bail agents, bail solicitors and other interested parties. It is now a crime for a bail agent to contract an incarcerated person for the purpose of soliciting bail on behalf to the licensee.

Broker Fiduciary Duties Regulation The Commissioner proposes to adopt a regulation regarding the fiduciary duties owed to a client by insurance salespeople who represent consumers ("brokers"). Specifically, the regulation requires brokers to disclose income they receive in handling a transaction for a client. The regulation also makes it an unfair act for a broker to fail to inform a client about a "best available insurer" or to steer a client away from that insurer. For further information on this regulation, please select the following links: Proposed Text of the Regulations and the Initial Statement of Reasons

July 2004 Notice

Producer Licensing Services in Sacramento This notice was sent to all admitted insurers and other interested parties. Beginning August 16, 2004, CDI will no longer offer Producer Licensing Services at the public counter in Sacramento. This notice describes the licensing services that are provided online at the CDI Web site at www.insurance.ca.gov or at the Producer Licensing Toll-Free number at (800) 967-9331.

October 2003 Notice

Producer Licensing Services in San Francisco This notice was sent to all admitted insurers and other interested parties. Beginning November 1, 2003, CDI will no longer offer Producer Licensing Services at the public counter in San Francisco. This notice describes the licensing services that are provided online at the CDI Web site at www.insurance.ca.gov or at the Producer Licensing Toll-Free number at (800) 967-9331.

July 2003 Notices

Producer Licensing Services in Los Angeles This notice was sent to all admitted insurers and other interested parties. Beginning August 1, 2003, CDI will no longer offer Producer Licensing Services at the public counter in San Francisco. This notice describes the licensing services that are provided online at the CDI Web site at www.insurance.ca.gov or at the Producer Licensing Toll-Free number at (800) 967-9331.

March 2003 Notice

Notice of Privacy Regulations This notice was sent to remind all insurance institutions, agents, and insurance support organizations ("licensees") subject to the provisions of the California Insurance Information and Privacy Protection Act (California Insurance Code Sections 791 - 791.27) and the privacy provisions of the Federal Gramm-Leach-Bliley Financial Services Modernization Act that California's regulations governing the Privacy of Nonpublic Personal Information took effect on March 24, 2003. For further information on these regulations, please select the following link: Text of the Regulations

If you have any questions about any license information you retrieved, please see the most commonly asked questions in our License Questions and Answers section. If you need further assistance, please call CDI's Producer Licensing Bureau at (800) 967-9331 or send an e-mail to the Producer Licensing Bureau. Please be sure to include your name, telephone number, license number and e-mail address in all correspondence with the Department.